222 entomological news. [November, 



The San Jos6 or pernicious scale was the subject for several communi- 

 cations before the Association. Mr. \V. E. Britton spoke of the scale in 

 Connecticut and of its distribution there. Mr. R. A. Cooley, in a general 

 paper on the scale insects of New England, brought in incidentally the 

 distribution of this pernicious scale in Massachusetts. Prof. W. G. John- 

 son gave a very interesting account of the effects of hydrocyanic acid gas 

 as a remedy for this scale. The experiments made by him in Maryland 

 with this gas have been absolutely successful, and a very large number 

 of trees has now been treated and apparently cleaned completely by the 

 use of this method. Aside from the first cost of the tents the fumigating 

 method seems to be the cheapest and on the whole the most effective. 

 Kerosene has been found thoroughly unsatisfactory in his experience. 

 On this point the experience of Prof. Hopkins, of West Virginia, and 

 Prof. Alwood, of Virginia, differed, for these gentlemen have found it 

 possible to use kerosene satisfactorily under proper conditions. Prof. 

 Johnson's results seem to stand alone in the very serious injury caused on 

 a large variety of fruit trees. The writer's experience in New Jersey, 

 where many hundreds of trees were treated during the winter of 1897-98, 

 was that, except for young peach trees, nothing was harmed to any 

 extent. 



New Jersey's contribution to this scale literature was a statement of the 

 extent of the distribution of the scale in that State. It was pointed out 

 that the area of infestation was relatively very small, and that practically 

 there were only two or possibly three important centers of infestation. 

 The maps usually published, showing the distribution of the scale in the 

 United States, was unfair to New Jersey, because points of infestation 

 are marked with such large spots that, while half a dozen of them will 

 readily find a place in Ohio or Illinois, the same number would be suffi- 

 cient to almost blot out New Jersey altogether. A map was shown giving 

 the exact distribution of the scale so far as it was known at that time. 



Mr. A. F. Burgess showed a series of specimens of Adalia bipuncta and 

 its variety humeralis, and detailed the records of breeding the variety 

 from the normal form, and the results of breeding the variety upon itself 

 and upon the parent form. 



Mr. E. P. Felt gave a very interesting record of the egg-laying habits of 

 the elm leaf beetle, and also notes on the principle insects that had proved 

 troublesome in New York State during the Summer of 1898. 



On the same line Prof. A. D. Hopkins presented notes on observations 

 in West Virginia since the Buffalo meeting. A number of the matters 

 brought up under these notes were discussed by the members present. 

 One feature was indirectly brought out ; that is, that the entomologists 

 are getting a grip on their states that enables them to keep posted in a 

 general way as to what is going on in all parts of it. 



Dr. L. O. Howard called attention to some beneficial insects recently 

 imported from abroad, and detailed some attempts that had been made 

 to introduce parasites into new localities ; also the interesting discovery 





